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Portrait of a Courtesan (Caravaggio)
Encyclopedia
Portrait of a Courtesan (also known as Portrait of Fillide) was a painting by the Baroque
master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Painted between 1597 and 1599, it was destroyed in Berlin
in 1945 and is known only from photographs. It has been suggested that the portrait represents the goddess Flora
who was herself a courtesan.
or bergamot
, symbol of marriage and fidelity, and claimed the subject as Caterina Campi, wife of Caravaggio's friend Onorio Longhi. Caravaggio scholar John Gash, however, identifies the flowers as "definitely jasmine", symbol of erotic love, and therefore more suitable to a courtesan than to a respectable married woman. The portrait belonged to Caravaggio's patron, Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani
, and the 1638 inventory of the Giustiniani collection lists a "portrait of a courtesan named Fillide", identified by modern scholars as Fillide Melandroni.
Fillide figured prominently in Caravaggio's work in the closing years of the 1590s, appearing as Saint Catherine
, as Mary in Martha and Mary Magdalene
, and as Judith in Judith Beheading Holofernes
. She may have appeared even more frequently - a considerable number of Caravaggio's works are now lost - but she seems to vanish from his paintings after 1599. If sophisticated patrons such as Giustiniani represented one pole of Caravaggio's life, the world of Fillide was the other. She was one of Rome's most successful prostitutes, much sought after by the Roman elite; but she had her true existence in the streets. In February 1599 she was arrested together with a young man named Ranuccio Tomassoni, who seems to have been her pimp, (he came from a good family but was continually turning up in police records in the company of prostitutes, and not as a customer), and charged with creating a disturbance in connection with a noisy mardi gras
party in her house. Fillide's friends included another prostitute, Anna Bianchini, who modelled for Caravaggio as Mary Magdalene in his Penitent Magdalene
, as Martha (opposite Fillide) in Martha and Mary Magdalene, and as the Mother of Christ in Rest on the Flight into Egypt
. Tomassoni would also appear again, but not in paintings: he and Caravaggio seem to have become enemies, for reasons unknown, and in 1606 Caravaggio killed Tomassoni in a street brawl.
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Painted between 1597 and 1599, it was destroyed in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
in 1945 and is known only from photographs. It has been suggested that the portrait represents the goddess Flora
Flora (mythology)
In Roman mythology, Flora was a goddess of flowers and the season of spring. While she was otherwise a relatively minor figure in Roman mythology, being one among several fertility goddesses, her association with the spring gave her particular importance at the coming of springtime...
who was herself a courtesan.
Interpretation
Earlier scholars identified the flower she presses to her breast as orange blossomOrange Blossom
Orange Blossom is a French band that plays a mix of electronic and world music.The band was formed in Nantes in 1993 with Pierre-Jean Chabot on violin and Jean-Christophe Waechter on percussions and vocals....
or bergamot
Bergamot
Bergamot may refer to:*The Bergamot orange*Monarda, genus of herbs of similar odor to the Bergamot orange; in particular**Monarda didyma, called Bergamot, Scarlet Beebalm, Scarlet Monarda, Oswego Tea, or Crimson Beebalm...
, symbol of marriage and fidelity, and claimed the subject as Caterina Campi, wife of Caravaggio's friend Onorio Longhi. Caravaggio scholar John Gash, however, identifies the flowers as "definitely jasmine", symbol of erotic love, and therefore more suitable to a courtesan than to a respectable married woman. The portrait belonged to Caravaggio's patron, Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani
Vincenzo Giustiniani
thumb|upright|Vincenzo Giustiniani in a portrait by [[Nicolas Régnier]] Marchese Vincenzo Giustiniani was an aristocratic Italian banker, art collector and intellectual of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, known today largely for the Giustiniani art collection, assembled at Palazzo...
, and the 1638 inventory of the Giustiniani collection lists a "portrait of a courtesan named Fillide", identified by modern scholars as Fillide Melandroni.
Fillide figured prominently in Caravaggio's work in the closing years of the 1590s, appearing as Saint Catherine
Saint Catherine (Caravaggio)
Saint Catherine of Alexandria is an oil painting by the Italian Baroque master Caravaggio. It is part of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection of Madrid....
, as Mary in Martha and Mary Magdalene
Martha and Mary Magdalene (Caravaggio)
Martha and Mary Magdalene is a painting by the Italian Baroque master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. It is in the Detroit Institute of Arts. Alternate titles include Martha Reproving Mary, The Conversion of the Magdalene....
, and as Judith in Judith Beheading Holofernes
Judith Beheading Holofernes (Caravaggio)
Judith Beheading Holofernes is a work by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, painted in 1598-99. The widow Judith first charms the Assyrian general Holofernes, then decapitates him in his tent.- Subject :...
. She may have appeared even more frequently - a considerable number of Caravaggio's works are now lost - but she seems to vanish from his paintings after 1599. If sophisticated patrons such as Giustiniani represented one pole of Caravaggio's life, the world of Fillide was the other. She was one of Rome's most successful prostitutes, much sought after by the Roman elite; but she had her true existence in the streets. In February 1599 she was arrested together with a young man named Ranuccio Tomassoni, who seems to have been her pimp, (he came from a good family but was continually turning up in police records in the company of prostitutes, and not as a customer), and charged with creating a disturbance in connection with a noisy mardi gras
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
party in her house. Fillide's friends included another prostitute, Anna Bianchini, who modelled for Caravaggio as Mary Magdalene in his Penitent Magdalene
Penitent Magdalene (Caravaggio)
Penitent Magdalene is a 16th century oil on canvas painting by Italian Baroque painter Caravaggio. The painting portrays a repentant Mary Magdalene, bowed over in penitent sorrow as she leaves behind her dissolute life, its trappings abandoned beside her. At the time of its completion, ca...
, as Martha (opposite Fillide) in Martha and Mary Magdalene, and as the Mother of Christ in Rest on the Flight into Egypt
Rest on the Flight into Egypt (Caravaggio)
Rest on the Flight into Egypt is a painting by the Italian Baroque master Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, in the Doria Pamphilj Gallery, Rome....
. Tomassoni would also appear again, but not in paintings: he and Caravaggio seem to have become enemies, for reasons unknown, and in 1606 Caravaggio killed Tomassoni in a street brawl.